Synchronization
by InSyncPanic
Summary: AU. Four girls attend the prestigious Dreston Academy of the Arts. They have no choice but to work together as a band if they want to win the prize of the school's last annual End of the Year event: "Battle of the Bands." And they need to win. They'll also have to overcome issues with their love lives and their families, but they can only help themselves by helping each other.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey readers, this is a collab fic from Shinju-chu and lovethanfight! We hope you like it!**

**Shinju-chu: Leaf and Dawn**

**lovethanfight: May and Misty**

**Pairings: OldRivalshipping, Constestshipping, Ikarishipping, and Pokeshipping**

**Disclaimer: We don't own Pokemon as much as we wish we did. All rights reserved to Satoshi Taijiri. We also don't own the, if any at all, mentioned companies.**

* * *

An outline of Dreston Academy of the Arts:

The campus is about 2.5 miles wide and 2.5 miles long. It holds the school building, four courtyards-one in each cardinal direction meaning North, East, South, or West, sport areas (tennis, baseball/softball, indoor pool, track course, and a gym for etc.), and the two dormitories-one for each gender.

The school building is a mile long and half a mile wide and has 5 floors, all with carpet flooring with the exception of the cafeteria. The school office, ESL classes, and Special Ed are on the first floor.

The 2nd floor is the cafeteria, which can hold up to 500 persons at the very most and has marble flooring. If the cafeteria was full, you'd have to go eat in one of the courtyards. Each courtyard is a quarter mile long and quarter mile wide.

The third floor is the library/computer lab which holds the same amount of persons as the cafeteria.

The fourth floor holds the academic classes while the fifth holds the art classes.

The rooftop is closed to all but the staff. On each end of the floor there is a staircase leading to all the other floors.

The dormitories are the same size as the school building except that it is only half a mile long. One dormitory is for boys which is left of the school building, if you're facing the school building, and the other is for girls which is on the right.

There are about 100 dorms each floor and 2 students share a dorm. Hypothetically, the school can only hold up to 1,000 students (500 each gender. 250 each grade/125 each gender per grade. Only very talented students can get into this famous academy). Every two dorms are connected to each other via mini hallways in bedrooms.

Each dorm has three rooms: a bedroom, a kitchen, and a bathroom. Opening the dorm door will lead into the bedroom. The desks are closest to the entrance. Every two dorms are connected to each other via mini hallway between the desk and bed. The hallway has two doors, one on each end so they can be locked for privacy. To visualize the dorm, picture a square then divide it vertically in half. One half, whether it be right or left, will be the bedroom. Divide the other half into halves again, this time horizontally. The top quarter will be the kitchen and the bottom quarter will be horizontally divided again to form two identical bathrooms.

Each bedroom has two twin sized beds. Everything is symmetrical, so once you open the door one bed will be on the left and one on the right. Two shelves will be on the wall the bed is up against. Next to the bed is a nightstand and at the foot of the bed is a desk for the student. At the head of the bed is a window. Between the beds is a wardrobe which the roommates would have to share.

Each kitchen will have a stove/oven, a fridge, and a sink/counter with cabinets and all. There is one big window in front of the sink.

Each bathroom has the standard toilet and bathtub with shower head and curtain. There is no window, in case you were wondering. Next to the door of the dorms is a mailbox, too.

Dorm rooms are organized by the floor number and room number (ex. 2-16 (2nd Floor, 16th room)). You get, along with the locator, a map of the school and dorms each year.

The girls are all in the eleventh grade.

With that, our story begins.

* * *

**Synchronization**

**Chapter 1**

**Leaf**

* * *

I held back a sigh as I sat up leaning against the head of my bed. Life was just so _fantastic._ That was sarcasm, by the way. See, when I say _fantastic_, I mean _not fantastic_, because being forced into yet a third year of school that you didn't even want to attend in the first place is absolutely _not_ fucking fantastic. Especially if you were dragged back to it a week early so that you could "get used to living in your new dorm." Why did the school allow coming early anyway; everyone knows all the dorms are almost identical. Oh right, I forgot about new students. It's such a pain in the ass sometimes.

I laid back down and tossed and turned on the bed, trying to get back to sleep. It was in vain. I glared at the digital alarm clock I'd bought in the summer, its time reading 11 a.m sharp. I'd have to get used to waking up at around 6 in the goddamn morning if I feel like taking 0 period like last year. Last year... Tenth grade was full of it, and now there's eleventh grade that could be even worse.

Grumbling to myself, I finally got up from the bed and dragged myself to the bathroom to brush my teeth and try to fix my hair. I grabbed my hat, threw it on, and drowsily waltzed into the kitchen for breakfast/brunch. Classic instant ramen is never a bad choice, no matter the ginormous amount of MSG!

_Healthy_, I know, but by the time I was done, it was 11:56 and I checked my mailbox and there was a notice sent for me. Supposedly, a "Misty Waterflower" was going to be my roommate. Hm, Misty Waterflower... I think I went to elementary school with that girl... Huh. Anyways, I left the 3rd floor of the dormitory and the building itself to go try and catch the 12 o'clock bus.

Having boarded said vehicle, I found myself an otherwise empty seat somewhere in the middle and waited until we stopped at my destination: the Hayden Plaza. I was in need of back-to-school clothes and school supplies, especially since there were only three days left until Thursday, when class would finally start. Mondays are actually the best time to go shopping because everybody, and I mean _everybody_, hates Mondays and are staying in or working since it is of course a weekday. Less clothes competition for me!

Hitting not even half the stores, I ended up with a billion bags. By billion, I mean twenty-two, but hey, close enough. My bags were filled to the top with fresh tops, crop tops, tank tops, a few blouses and graphic tee's-basically I got lots of uber cute tops. Same goes for the new jeans, shorts, and leggings. Oh, and don't forget the four pairs of shoes I picked up! I also found this cute beige messenger bag which I just _had_ to have and immediately bought it.

Satisfied, I headed back to the dorm and shoved all my latest buys under the bed. Only to realize that buying actual school supplies had _totally_ slipped my mind. _Shit_. I rushed back to the plaza as fast as I could to get some mechanical pencils, a binder, notebooks, and etc. These, I placed on top of my desk. I glanced at my clock and it had only been a few hours since I checked last, so I pretty much had the rest of the afternoon-soon-turning-into-evening to waste.

_Hm... I _have_ been getting rusty on my performances..._ I decided to go to the music room, and believe me, I was exhausted when I arrived because of those _thousands_ of steps I had to climb. Talk about a workout! But that's besides the point. I grabbed an acoustic guitar off of its stand, along with a pick, and practiced what I remembered of some notes. Sadly, I couldn't remember anything but the strings themselves... Well that's okay, I've got another three days to get back in gear! However there was one song I knew at heart, and I began to strum the beginning before I let my fingers do the rest.

Playing guitar was hard work, especially if you've only had about a year and a half to learn how to play the instrument. I thought it'd be fun, so I had switched from piano to guitar which turned out to be a challenge. But I never turn down a challenge. Even if I didn't finish learning to play the piano, I had the fundamentals down which I guess you can say helped me self teach the guitar. It's still hard for me though, so I'll have to keep trying.

Snapping out of my thoughts, I found myself just toying with the guitar strings. I sighed. _I came here to practice, not to fool around..._ That being said, I placed the guitar back on its stand and walked down the long staircase all the way back down and was about to leave the building when I bumped into someone.

"Sorr—Oh it's just you. In that case, watch it," sneered the girl. _Great_, just _great_. _Tiana_. By the way, if you couldn't tell that was sarcasm just now, you're pretty dense.

I glared and stepped around her as to not give her the satisfaction of knowing she pissed me off. Tiana is my cousin; she has pretty decent looks and a seemingly "good girl" attitude about her. You could say we don't get along. She might _look_ nice—Hell, she might even _sound_ nice, but believe me she's an evil brat who uses anyone and everyone to get what she wants. And she likes to use me a lot.

_Why put up with it_, you might ask. _Why let her use you like a fucking tool? Why not just leave?_ I've tried, but when you've got legal documents saying you're under the guardianship of your aunt and uncle, you're forced to stay with them until adulthood. And if not worse, Tiana's parents are just like her.

Aunt Jesse and Uncle James are extremely nefarious people who only care for themselves, their daughter, and strangely their little cat. No matter what Tiana wants, does, and gets, her parents are 200% behind her. Which leads to why I got dragged into this dumb school anyway.

Tiana always had this sick little fantasy in her head that she'd turn out to be a pop star or something. Seeing as many successful musical prodigies come from the famous Dreston Academy of the Arts, Tiana demanded she attend. However, there was a minor, or dare I say _major_, setback: the poor girl has no talent in the music industry. However, due to her charming the staff, she was given a second chance and that's where I come in. I provide the music for Tiana and she got into the academy by using my work. At the time, I thought, _'At least Tiana won't be home to order me around,'_ but the girl was smarter than she let on. She needed my music to stay in the academy, thus making me audition to get in with her. _Joy_.

And that's basically the story of how I spent my first two—and now three—years of high school in Dreston when I could have been in an _actual_ school being educated on something that would actually be _useful_ and _contribute to society_ instead of practicing and failing at playing a guitar. Although, I have to admit that music is a pretty fun subject... Well, now I'm contradicting myself and it's completely subjective whether guitar is positive or not so you can't really blame me for being confusing.

I had reached the dormitory and was making my way up the stairs when I saw a fellow brunette making her way up, too. She had some side bangs and the rest of her hair was tucked into a red bandanna except for some locks on both sides of her head. Nice hair, at least better than my own messy style. Personally though, my motto is, "Bad hair, don't care."

Besides that, I saw that she was trying to drag four suitcases up the stairs by herself. Wow, I only brought two when I came, but four? That must be heavy. I purposely dragged behind as to not offend her by walking ahead. In fact, after watching the girl struggle with her luggage for a while, I decided to give her a hand.

"Want some help with that?" I offered. She looked up and finally taking in the question, she nodded, flustered. I took two of the suitcases and heaved them up until we reached the 3rd floor.

"Um, I think this is my floor..." the bandanna-clad girl said, stopping to take out her locator and map.

"Oh cool, it's mine, too," I added, waiting for her to find her dorm. It was taking a while so I started glance at my surroundings with nothing better to do. Finally, we found her room.

"Oh! Here; room 3-28!"

"No way! I'm living in room 3-27, which makes us dorm neighbors!" I gasped. We looked at each other and giggled. She stuck out her hand for me to shake which I did.

"I'm May Maple, and thanks for helping me move all my stuff up here," she introduced herself.

"The name's Leaf. Leaf Green," I smiled, and we finally reached her dorm.

We both went into our own dorms but she shortly afterwards went through the hall connecting my bedroom to hers and made herself at home on my absent roommate's bed. I found out she just transferred to the Kanto region school from Hoenn, and after having a long girl talk we became friends instantly. We chatted about everything, from old schools, friends, and crushes to food, fashion, books, movies, and dreams—we talked about almost everything there was to talk about. Eventually, she had to leave, but that's okay because I needed to shower anyway.

After a couple of hours of washing myself, I changed into the outfit I'd wear tomorrow-who cares if I don't like to change in the morning-and fell asleep under the blanket on my bed.

Hm, maybe Dreston might not be that much of a hellhole this year after all.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Ta-da! Here's the second chapter. Thank you so much for all the reviews and favorites/follows. They mean a lot.**

**I (lovethanfight) responded to the reviews through PM, so please check. I didn't respond to the guest review (T****hank you, by the way, Michelle thought your review was awesome. We'll keep the story as creative as we can.)**

**Disclaimer: We don't own Pokémon.**

* * *

**Synchronization**

**Chapter 2**

**May**

* * *

I forgot toothpaste. I woke up this morning and took a shower before waking Leaf up. After we ate breakfast, I went to one of the bathrooms to brush my teeth. That was when I discovered that I forgot toothpaste. Stupid, stupid, _stupid_.

"Hey Leaf?" I called.

"What?" she yelled back, but with her mouth filled with cereal so it sounded more like, "Whuff."

"I forgot my toothpaste!" I whined.

Leaf didn't say anything for a moment, then laughed loudly.

"How could you forget the most important morning tool we need?" she said, disappearing into her own dorm to return shortly with an extra tube of toothpaste in hand. I beamed at her, snatching the tube.

"Thanks!"

Leaf rolled her eyes and resumed eating while I brushed my teeth. From the mirror, I could see Leaf sitting in the kitchen. I should've closed the door... Oh well. I finished brushing my teeth and started to talk to her. I learned that she's been here for the past two years, so she knew lots of things about the place that I didn't.

"Every student has a roommate?" I asked.

"Even if they don't, they would still be connected to the others in the neighboring dorm."

"Who's mine?"

She shrugged. "Check the mail."

"What mail?"

"There is a box called a mailbox," she sighed. "It's outside."

I walked outside and caught sight of a burgundy, metallic box right next to the door. A thin stack of envelopes were in my hand when I went back in. I sorted out my dorm's mail from Leaf's dorm. In the very front of my mail was a paper folded in three.

"Dawn Berlitz is my roommate," I announced, throwing the rest of the mail in Leaf's direction.

Dawn, that sounded familiar. The person that comes to mind is a blue-haired girl I sat next to in middle school. But is Berlitz her last name? Oh well, I'll find out soon.

"I'm rooming with Misty Waterflower," Leaf replied with a shrug, shoving another spoonful of cereal into her mouth. "They're supposed to be here today."

As if on cue, someone knocked on the door.

"Hello?" It was a slightly muffled voice, but obviously belonging to a girl. I shared a look with Leaf, then looked out of the little peephole. I could make out bright, short hair in a side ponytail, but that was it.

'Not the right Dawn,' I thought as I opened the door.

"Hi! I'm Misty, and the other room was locked and no one was there, so can I..." she trailed off, grinning at me bashfully. I smiled brightly at her, opening the door and ushering the girl in.

"Sure! Your roommate's in here, actually. She was just helping me unpack. Right, Leaf?"

Leaf was still eating. She was completely concentrated on her cereal, so I tried again.

"Leaf?"

She furrowed her eyebrows, probably in annoyance, then looked up.

"What?" she said, finally noticed her new roommate. "Who's that?"

"Your roommate," I answered.

"Oh. I'm Leaf, nice to meet you. I'll show you to our dorm." Misty smiled uneasily, following Leaf through the hallway that connected our rooms.

I spent the rest of the day unpacking and learning about the school. Leaf was typing information for me on her laptop. Apparently, she couldn't handle saying so many words at once.

"It'll look better on screen," she claimed.

"Hey, were you in the same class at me in elementary?" Misty asked.

I looked up, but saw that she was looking in Leaf's direction, so I didn't answer.

"I think so," Leaf answered thoughtfully. "Ms. Resher's? Were you in the guitar class last year?"

My mind began to drift away from their conversation. Then I felt a buzzing, breaking me away from my daydreaming. _Bzz, bzz_. It was coming from my phone, which was neatly tucked in the front pocket of my shorts.

"Hello?" I picked up, not bothering to look at the caller.

"May!" a boyish, cheerful voice came from the other side of the phone. It was my little brother, Max.

"It's us, sweetie," I heard a familiar voice call out.

"Hi mom, Max. I got here safely, if that's what you want to know."

"Uhh," Max started. "We need to warn you about something..."

They stayed silent. Growing impatient, I snapped.

"What is it?"

"Sweet pea, your dad will call after he gets back from work to have a talk with you," my mom answered cautiously.

I groaned. To say that my dad and I didn't have a good relationship was an understatement. Honestly, it was the worst. We argued and wouldn't speak to one another until the next argument. When he had finally had enough, he decided to send me... here.

"About what?"

"Dunno," Max said. I bit my bottom lip. Even though I had asked, I had a pretty good guess on what my dad would be "talking" to me about.

"Alright. Thanks guys."

"Love you, May!" they chorused. I smiled, despite the bad news.

"Love you, too. Bye."

After hanging up, I went back to reading Leaf's detailed description of the school and very _colorful_ descriptions of the people in the school. She even pasted some also _colorfully_ drawn on pictures underneath the names. She must have worked really hard on this... I skimmed down on the list, stopping a little each time for when I recognized someone.

The time passed, and a few hours later, Leaf was making popcorn in her kitchen and Misty and I sat at the kitchen table debating about what movie to watch.

"I already _watched_ that movie," Misty whined.

"But I already watched _that_ movie!" I argued.

And there it was. Again, my phone was buzzing, calling for my attention. I hesitated before pulling it out. Leaf gave me a questioning look, probably because of the way I was looking at the phone.

"Who is it?" Misty asked, glancing in my direction.

"My, um, dad," I stuttered.

My finger hovered over the screen hesitantly before I pressed down on the "Accept" button. I watched the phone start to count the seconds before bringing the phone up to my ear.

"Hello?" My voice, luckily, didn't shake.

"May," my dad answered. He sounded like he always did when he talked to me—tense and disappointed, as if I casually dealed out drugs every Friday night.

"Dad," I tried to keep my voice as stable as possible.

Misty and Leaf gave me a reassuring smile and a wink, respectively, despite not understanding what was going on. They quietly left the room to give me privacy.

"How is school?" he asked, equally emotionless and uncaring.

"It didn't start yet. Why did you call?" I wanted to get this conversation over as quick as possible. He hesitated a bit before continuing.

"I am not paying for anything. I refuse to pay for any more of your school supplies. You can work and get it yourself."

I almost dropped my phone in shock. I take it back; this conversation isn't ending until he explained.

"What?"

"You heard what I said," he responded.

"That isn't fair! You sent me here; you basically forced me to go here! You can't do that!"

"I have no choice since you practically burned my credit card," he snapped.

I could feel the tears forming, but I refused to cry. What he was doing was completely ridiculous and senseless. No choice? I'm his _daughter. _Are his credit cards suddenly more important than me?

"Fine then," I spat. "I don't care."

I hung up, throwing my phone at the table. I glared at it for some time. I barely noticed when Leaf and Misty walked in.

"May?" Leaf asked hesitantly. "You okay?"

I slowly lifted my head, blinking away tears.

"Yeah," I smiled brightly.

She raised an eyebrow, not buying it, but dropped the subject.

"I'll show you guys around," she said instead.

* * *

"We can come out here during lunch and breaks," Misty suggested after we finished the tour.

She walked us to the front gate, the part of the school I saw in the front. It was open and students along with a few adults were coming in and out.

"There's a mall near here," Leaf added. "Do you want to go?"

I nodded. To be honest, I wasn't really paying attention to the tour; I barely took in anything the girls had said. Going to the mall was the perfect way to look for part-time jobs because my dad wasn't kidding when he said he wouldn't pay any of my expenses. I live (or lived) with my dad, so I know that joking—to him—was like stealing from a shoeless hobo. And his ego, ahem, _dignity, _wouldn't dare to even consider changing his decisions, much less apologize.

Almost as soon as we arrived, our arms were carrying dozens of bags. I know, I know. I shouldn't be spending so much when I just arrived and been denied money by my loving father. But I'm not lazy; I've worked before and definitely will again to have more than enough money to spend.

At around seven, the three of us were at a yogurt shop called 'The Rainbow Palette' and eating, well, yogurt.

My phone, which was sitting on the table, vibrated once.

Misty dropped her purple spoon back in the cup. Her jaw dropped. She picked up her own phone, turned it on, back off, and set it down. All in that order.

"You got a text?" she exclaimed, disappointed that she hasn't gotten a text yet. "I've been waiting for one since _forever_. Who is it?"

I read the text and smiled, momentarily forgetting about my dad.

"Uh, no one," I lied, seeing Misty's expecting gaze.

"Doesn't look like no one," Leaf muttered, grinning a little when my cheeks warmed. I read the text:

**[rainbow palette? p.s. turn around]**

I quickly glanced over my shoulders to find the one who had sent me the text, who caught my gaze and subtly jerked his head in the direction of the restrooms.

"I need to use the restroom," I muttered, knowing that Misty and Leaf didn't believe my lie. Acting isn't exactly my forte. Fortunately, they were decent enough to mind their own business.

I got up and tried, probably failing, to walk without seeming overly excited. Reaching the restrooms, I saw my most favorite person in the world: my boyfriend.

"Drew!"


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Shinju-chu here! Sorry that this is late. Like two weeks and a half late. Thanks for all the lovely reviews. We'll reply with PMs. Thank you Ready to Fly for reviewing, too. We sure got you guys with the early on Contestshipping, huh? Well, good!  
**

**I have a feeling this is going to be a long story, like those twenty something chapter ones, and we aren't going to do the usual four perspectives on one scene kind of story. That's why we might seem like we're kind of rushing here, but I swear we're not. We just want to get to the plot already! Kelly, well lovethanfight, and I will try to keep this as original as possible!**

**OMG, THERE'S MORE? Yeah, sorry that this is a long A/N, but it's also the longest chapter so far. It's 2,234 words long without the A/N and whatever that thing is below. Like the title or something? Whatever. Anyways, I replaced things like Poffins with Peffins because it stands for "Pet Muffins" instead of "Pok******é**mon Muffins." For those of you that didn't know, I did my research and yes, Poffins are based on muffins. I know, weird, but I didn't make Pok******é**mon so don't look at me.**

**Also, I did not use "Arceus" because this is an AU. Arceus does not exist. I'm sorry, but this is an AU. Pok****émon don't exist in this AU. And I hope I don't offend anyone by using holy names because I didn't mean to offend you. Sorry if I offend you.  
**

**Lastly, Dawn is in the eleventh grade with the rest of the girls. You'll see why she says it's her second year in the future.**

**Okay, that's all over! Here's the chapter so enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: We don't own Pok******é**mon. We're not cool enough. If we did, we wouldn't make Amourshipping as canon as it is now. It's cute but it's killing all us old school Pok******e**shippers.**

* * *

**Synchronization**

**Chapter 3**

**Dawn**

* * *

I was nervous.

This school was so unnerving. This would be my second year in Dreston and also my second year of high school. I didn't really know what to make of it. I already packed all my bags and everything a week early with the help of my mom and just now am I heading back.

_'It's only midnight,'_ I thought to myself. How early. I could just imagine how many parties were just getting really started now that my BFFL's (Best Friends For Life) and I wouldn't be at tonight... Good times, really. Just Lucas, Barry, and me trying not to be crushed by the crowd.

_'I wonder how they're doing,'_ I silently mused before I snapped back to reality. A sorrowful, boring reality of waiting for the taxi I called long ago to come already. I was sitting on the curb and tapping my fingers impatiently, waiting for my taxi to finally show up.

Eventually I caught sight of the distinguishing yellow of a cab and stood up. Once the vehicle had come to a complete stop, I gave the driver my two suitcases which he stored away in the trunk. I went to attempt making myself as comfortable as I could get in the backseat of a cab.

When he got back to his seat, he huffed, "Geez girl, do you have to live in the middle of nowhere? It'll take me two hours to get there!"

"S-sorry..." I mumbled. Sadly, what he said was true—Twinleaf Town _was_ the middle of nowhere. Away from Sandgem Town and even further away from Jublife City, it would take lots of time to arrive here, especially with a cab.

I inwardly sighed. It doesn't matter, all that matters is that I have to return to school, miles apart from home.

I stared out at the passing streetlights. I squinted and saw the lights stretch out and I just played around like that for a few minutes before getting bored. I wish I could at least say that the music wasn't good either. However, it was a different case.

The driver apparently didn't appreciate any music at all so I stuck in complete and utter silence. What a drag! I couldn't believe my rotten luck; I'd be stuck for hours in this boring, old, smelly car.

Oh my God, is that a spider?!

* * *

About five hours later, we finally arrived at the front gates of Dreston Academy of the Arts. Finally! My legs were getting nu—scratch that, they are numb. Oh God, my legs feel dead! Why cruel world, why?!

Dragging my "dead" legs to go grab my luggage, I handed the taxi driver his cash—no tip—and begrudgingly typed in my SSID (Super Secret ID, a.k.a. Student ID) and waited as the gates gradually opened.

I walked into the girls' dorm building, which had the aroma of... mint chocolate ice cream? On a counter I saw cookies with said flavor. That explains it.

Anyways, I trudged my suitcases all the way to my dorm, which was Room 3-28, and opened the door. The place was empty of people, but there were some belongings left. Huh... Shouldn't my roommate be sleeping at five in the morning? Oh well. I slid my luggage under the bed and plopped down on the mattress. What was I supposed to do now? _Oh right_, sleep.

I tucked myself in under the covers and fell asleep.

* * *

When I woke up, I once again found myself alone in the room. Shouldn't my roommate be back by now? I mean, tomorrow is when school starts! Ugh, whatever.

It was one in the afternoon already. I went to brush my teeth and then change, but I left everything in my suitcase. Pulling it out from under the bad, I grabbed my everyday necessities and put them away in an organized fashion. _Then_, I brushed my teeth and changed. By the time I finished, I was really craving a taco.

So I walked to a nearby Mexican restaurant in Hayden Plaza and bought three and a Root Beer. Three tacos should do the trick! But it didn't, so I also got a chicken quesadilla. Yum.

After that was over, I decided to window shop around the plaza. There wasn't really anything that got my attention. I decided to return to school for when my roommate came back. However, someone rudely bumped into_ me_. No, of course I didn't bump into _them_. What makes you say that?

"Ow! Hey! Watch it!" I whined at the person. The guy ran off like I was a serial killer, chainsaw and all. Huh, lavender hair. What a weirdo.

I mean, why would you like having purple hair? It makes you look like... Well, like... A grape popsicle! Scratch that, a grape gumdrop skewered on the top of a chopstick! Well, if the guy was a bit scrawnier. Purple hair is so not cool. Plus, it was a _dude_ with purple hair.

What kind of guy has purple hair? What kind of _person_ has purple hair? Like seriously, I would never wear that look. _Ever_. Even if I do have blue hair. I mean, _my_ hair is okay because it looks black sometimes. So it's normal. Well, sorta normal. Right? _Right_? Ugh, this is so confusing.

For a while, I was just pacing around thinking about if it was okay to have purple hair or not. Luckily, it wasn't that long so then I continued to make my way back to the dorms. As I was turning to leave, I saw an electronics store, with a cheesy stack of TVs on display.

That's when I saw her. My mom was typically in the middle of an interview.

_"-for the final question?"_

_"Of course! Shoot."_

_"Haha, alright Mrs. Berlitz. This is one we all want to know. There's a rumor saying that your daughter was tried for-"_

I ran as quickly as I could away from the store, planning to race back to school. I didn't want to see that look on my mom's face. It stung even now, even after all those interviewers and reporters—pretty much all the press—who were nosy enough to ask her those kinds of questions. Why was everyone just _dying_ to know the truth? I mean haven't they heard that lies are beautiful or something? Jesus Christ.

It sucks when you're in a family with a famous dancer. Everyone knows everything about you. They're always talking about you, especially if you screw things up.

_'But you would be locked up without that fame,' _a voice in me whispered. I unconsciously clenched my fists. Whatever. All this depression is making me wonder if I've got Asperger's. Tch, yeah right. I made it back to the dorms in record time. Well, it would be record time if I kept a record.

I opened the door and this time I wasn't the only one there. The girl, May I think, was too busy texting to even notice me walk in. Good. Besides that, I glanced at the clock that read "5:16."

I walked to the bathroom and splashed my face with cold water. It was freezing, but refreshing at the same time. Is that weird? I digress. Anyways, I was exhausted! If you couldn't already tell, I don't exercise. I went back out to find that May had left for the dorm next to us. Or so the opened door to the hallway suggested as much. Jesus, I hope May knows how to close doors or I'll be stuck with that responsibility. I went through the hallway and got ready to meet the people I'd be living with this year.

* * *

"Hi!" exclaimed May. The other girls waved.

"I'm Misty, and this is Leaf," said the redhead. Leaf just nodded to acknowledge my prescence.

"I'm Dawn, obviously," I said, and sat down on Misty's desk's chair. "What are you guys up to?"

"Not much, really," said Leaf. "Just trying to get May to tell us who texted her yesterday." At this May blushed.

"I keep telling you guys, it's no one!" she cried, then threw a pillow at Leaf. Misty giggled and got back to... watching a documentary on dolphins. Dorky. I mean, that's totally cool in a way, but who watches documentaries nowadays? I quietly stole the TV remote and switched the channel to my favorite, the cooking channel.

"Hey!" pouted Misty. I smirked.

"Can't help it if I don't wanna watch how _oh so_ smart dolphins are. But seriously, look!" I pointed.

The lady on-screen was explaining how they were developing muffins for animals. A "Peffin," apparently. May groaned.

"Great, they're making muffins for animals. Wasn't making candy for animals enough? First 'Petblocks' and now 'Peffins!' A Peffin doesn't even look like a muffin!" she ranted.

I inwardly agreed. Plus, there were only five flavors for the animal muffins. I switched the channel to my second favorite, the fashion channel. But everything on it was so 2,000 and late. Society these days, leaving it up to you to make your own fashion statement.

"Nothing's on," I whined.

"Deal with it," replied Leaf as she chucked her pillow, the one May threw at _her_, at me. Ow! Damn, she hits hard.

"Leaf, are you joining the softball team?" I wondered aloud. She furrowed her eyebrows.

"Fuck to the no! I hate softball!" she screeched.

We laughed. That's a shame though, since I was thinking of joining. Oh well. After that it got kinda silent. Somewhat awkward silence, you could call it. I mean, like it wasn't _completely_ awkward, but it was awkward at the same time. Does that make sense? No? I thought not.

I wonder if shouting out 'Awkward!' would make the silence completely awkward so it wouldn't just be somewhat awkward. But it wasn't completely awkward yet so I'd have to say 'Somewhat awkward!' but that would be weird. What am I thinking about; I shouldn't shout anything out! I am so stupid sometimes.

I look up to see everyone else doing their own thing. Good. That means I wasn't talking out loud or hitting myself because of my self stupidity. Ugh, but it was still silent and I had nothing to do so it was like somewhat awkward, boring silence. I decided to break that somewhat awkward, boring silence.

"So..." I once again started. "Have you guys already picked out your outfit for tomorrow? I know I haven't, and we need to make an impression here, right?"

That got their attention real fast. Suddenly, three pairs of widened eyes bore their gaze into me like I was some kind of deranged... penguin. Penguin, because I hate monkeys _and_ clowns, which remind me of maniacs which is why I hate the word "maniac" because I don't like monkeys and clowns. And once again, I digress. Anyways...

"You... don't have... your outfit yet?" exclaimed May. "Girls, fashion emergency here!"

Misty ran into May's and my dorm dragging back some suitcases.

"Okay we need to do this, quick," the redhead said. "Already got her clothes." Leaf facepalmed.

"Misty, those are May's suitcases."

Huh, how did Leaf know that? I guess she's a psychic or something. Cool. Misty blushed and then put the suitcases back. She quickly returned with my own suitcases this time.

"Alright," stated Leaf. "Girls, open the suitcase."

Misty and May started going through my luggage. They also started picking out some clothes and arguing over what I should wear.

"_This_ would bring out her natural tones!"

"But _this_ would express her perfectly! I mean, that is a total fashion disaster!"

They looked ready to start a cat fight when Leaf broke it up by grabbing them both by their hair.

"Thanks Leaf," I said and she winked. "Guys, first of all, that outfit has no contrast whatsoever."

"Hah!" May smirked at Misty. Leaf yanked on her hair to which she shut up.

"But that outfit looks like a unicorn exploded all over it. I don't think an exploding unicorn 'expresses me,' per se." It was Misty's turn to laugh at May, and so Leaf yanked on _her_ hair. Leaf finally let go of their hair when they settled down. But that still doesn't change the fact that I had nothing to wear.

"We would go shopping, but it's pretty late now," said Leaf. I didn't want to go back to the plaza anyway, after what I saw today. It's fine though, I'd figure something out.

"We should head back and then sleep," May suggested. It _was_ midnight now, after all. Wow, the evening went by fast... I mean, we've been talking for seven hours.

Anyways, the rest of us agreed with May and we all went back to our dorms for the day ahead of us. We did need our beauty rest after all. Well, here goes. Another first day of school, and another year at Dreston...

Like I always say though, no need to worry. Right?


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hi there! It's lovethanfight. So, so sorry for being, what? A month late? I'm terrible. But it's here! The very first of Misty. We haven't gotten around to replying to the reviews yet, but we really appreciate them. If you did review, thank you! And thanks to everyone who followed and favorited.**

**Anyways, this might be a little long. Let's see, Misty has this sort of superstition that isn't really true, but she does believe it, so she talks about sometimes. Not true, and kind of childish, actually. I also only mention two sisters, but there are three.**

**And there's something else... Oh yeah. So in here there's this part that says that Misty nearly failed a class working for money for an elevator, which might be a little confusing, so please ask in a review if you want me to explain it. Actually, ****ask if _any _part of the chapter is confusing.**

**Ooh, first day of school! I wrote all the schedules, but we might change it later on. Dawn and Leaf have free periods in place of an elective. It's not described in the chapter, so here:**

**Leaf**

**1\. Physics  
2\. History  
3\. AP Calculus  
4\. Free  
5\. Volleyball  
6\. Latin  
7\. Guitar/Music  
8\. English**

**May**

**1\. Dance/PE  
2\. AP Calculus  
3\. Physics  
4\. Songwriting  
5\. English  
6\. Latin  
7\. Singing/Music  
8\. History**

**Misty**

**1\. Dance/PE  
2\. History  
3\. Songwriting  
4\. French  
5\. English  
6\. Bass/Music  
7\. Physics  
8\. Trigonometry**

**Dawn**

**1\. Precalculus  
2\. Spanish  
3\. History  
4\. Free  
5\. English  
6\. Percussion/Music  
7\. Physics  
8\. Softball**

**Okay. Here's the chapter now. Hope you enjoy! Please review.**

**Disclaimer: We don't own Pokemon.**

* * *

**Synchronization  
**

**Chapter 4**

**Misty**

* * *

To start off the first day of school, I'd like to tell you a story. The story of my second worst enemy.

They used to be first on the list, but somebody else climbed up top. Well, number one enemy, you don't get or deserve a story. So, ha! You lost the story to a fruit.

That's right, a fruit. More specially, a round-ish, orange fruit. An orange.

The orange.

How did it start? Let's start at the beginning of summer break. I was with my three sisters, who I refused to talk to ever since I "left" (as in, they fired me) their singing group. Who could be so heartless? Firing their own sister.

My sisters, apparently. Anyways, I was with them. I woke up a few moments ago, and entered the kitchen with a yawn.

"G'morning," I said, pointedly to our pet fish Goldie, who was in a little glass bowl on a counter.

They stopped their chattering as soon as my voice reached their ears.

"Misty! C'mere, have some breakfast!" Daisy, a pretty blonde who is easily the nicest sister, pulled me to a chair. I'd probably forgive her first. "Aww, Misty, don't pout. Here, I got you a sorry-we-fired-you present."

Daisy took out a baby blue box, tied with a dark blue ribbon. It was pretty, enchanting even. My hands itched to grab it, my fingers were _dying_ to open it. Presents were my weakness.

But I didn't. I turned my head instead, asking my other sister in the coldest way I could, "What's for today?"

"It's orange-themed today," Violet informed me. She was the official breakfast-maker of the house, since our housekeeper doesn't arrive until late afternoon. Violet was a very organized girl in the morning—later in the day she kinda quits—so she had to have a theme for breakfast.

Indeed, everything was "orange." The pancakes were made to look like an orange, orange juice was poured in pitcher, a basket of oranges sat in the middle of the table. She even changed our floral tablecloth to an orange one.

So what happened was: I ate, I threw up in the sink, I slipped on a half peeled orange.

The combination of barf and smushed orange's smell hit my nose a thousand times, again and again, until the incident was tattooed in my brain.

It was a horrifying day, except for the book of fairy tales (she _really_ wanted to see the gift). The end. Let's connect it to today. That day, nicknamed "The Orange Incident," has left me scarred. Every day that started with an orange equals to bad luck for the rest of the day.

Including today. I woke up to somebody _cooing_ in my ear ("Misty, aren't you cute this morning?"), somebody else (coughMaycough) ripping my pillow from under my head and pouring water all over me, and worst of all, the smell of orange.

And when I walked into the auditorium, I knew how my day would be. Because of that orange.

I looked for a chair that would my name on it. I found it next to my best friend's chair, who was also next to May. They weren't here yet, but unfortunately, enemy number one was.

Let me tell you about enemy number one _calmly_. His name is Ash Ketchum. We've been best friends ever since we were paired for a project. He was slower than most people, but he was naturally talented. He was also incredibly stubborn and a sore loser. And that's all that I'll tell you.

I went on to examine the new auditorium, completely ignoring him. He did the same.

The auditorium was a big building. In the center, there was a giant stage that rose so that it was higher than the students' seats. Every inch of the room seemed to be expensive and fretted over. Not that I'm complaining. These seats were almost as comfy as the beds. I felt like I was sitting on a cloud.

"Hi guys!" May arrived, pulling Drew behind her. I didn't know that they knew each other. When did this happen? "Drew, switch seats with me."

Surprisingly, he complied. Usually, he'd be annoying and ask "Why?" and demand an explanation. But he didn't. He walked right past us, flicked my forehead, and sat in May's seat. Huh.

"Uh, May?" I asked. She sat down in Drew's seat.

"Yeah?"

"You know him?"

She furrowed her eyebrows. "Yeah. I told you during breakfast."

Oh. Oops. Well, in my defense, I was too worried about my day. The orange-y smell gave me a sign.

"You did?"

May sighed, lifting the hair on her shoulder and throwing it back, as if it was a scarf. "Yeah. Anyways, we're dating."

I raised my eyebrows, probably looking very offended, and moved my head to see Drew. He shrugged, looking _very_ smug. I narrowed my eyes. He raised an eyebrow. I broke our silent conversation by looking at May. She was paying no attention to us. Instead she was looking around, and making short comments to Ash.

"May?"

She tore her gaze away from wherever she was looking. "Yeah?"

"Why are you dating Drew?" I asked, trying to sound as curious as possible.

She cocked her head slightly to the side. "What do you mean?"

I paused for a moment, searching for a way to ask my question in the most offending way possible. "His hair is, well, green."

Next to me, Ash snorted. Sure, we hate each other. But, we're just too hilarious to ignore each other all the time. Drew, on the other hand, scowled. His hair was always, and will always be, a subject we will laugh at.

He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, I shushed him.

"No cursing at cute redheads," I said.

He raised an eyebrow. "I don't see any cute redheads," he said, pretending to look around for someone.

The conversation ended when the lights dimmed, and from overhead, a spotlight shone on a small group of adults, the principal and his team. Our _wonderful_ vice principal of one year tapped the microphone in front of her.

"Hello, students!" she exclaimed as soon as she got everybody's attention. "I am your vice principal. You may call me Ms. Drisel. You're principal is not here yet; he will join us _later_ this week."

I had the unfortunate chance of learning a lot about her. She's _very_ theatrical.

"Now, for all you new students out there, I will tell you about our campus! All of us are here to learn about dancing, singing, acting. Of course, we can't forget our writers, directors, and producers. Or our technical, um, people," she flashed a smile at her crowd. "We're all here to learn."

I think she used to be an actress.

"We strongly believe that all you hard workers deserve to have a focused place to start building your careers. For our dancers, we have two dance studios in the West Wing, near the tennis courts. Actors, you are all blessed with three theaters! Isn't that wonderful? We also have our black box theater, which is on the fifth floor. The other theaters are in the North Wing."

Not a very good one, by the way. She was in last year's play and it was laughable.

"Of course, our theaters include a complete control booth. Learning to work in the control booth will be one of the many classes we have to offer. And as for the musicians..."

I learned last year that she hated singers and musicians, and through gossip, I heard that it was because when it came to anything that had to do with music, she failed.

"You all have multiple recording studios. Singers and producers will be taught to work and sing in one. On the fifth floor. Instruments will also be taught, practiced, and played in a different room."

As if she didn't already suck at acting.

"We have multiple make-up rooms, dressing rooms, etcetera, all around campus. We have extra classes that you can take to learn about them. Our sports area is in the space between the West Wing with the dance studios. You must take four years of sports or dance. It's all your choice, really. We'll send a map to go along with your I.D. and schedule. Today is all about choosing."

Maybe she used to be a dancer. I'm sure I heard something about her dancing.

"Our English, math, science, and history classes are held on the fourth floor. The third level holds the library and computer lab. We also have a new study hall."

I looked over at May to see if she was as bored as I was. The answer is no. She was not bored.

"Our cafeteria could get full, so you are allowed to eat in the South and East Wings. However, you cannot go into the first floor. There are stairs and an elevator, which can only hold ten people at a time. Please listen, only ten. It is in the back of the cafeteria."

People liked eating in the courtyards, anyways. She didn't mention an elevator anywhere else, which was disappointing. It's not like I spent four months raising money for one anyways.

"We have installed new elevator and escalators so that it would be easier to get to your classes!"

Wait, there it is. Elevator. I'm glad my hard work has been acknowledged.

"A round of applause for Mosty Waterflower, please."

Mosty? Mosty? Did she really just call me _Mosty_? The school clapped, cheered, and thanked me, ignoring the mispronunciation of my name. The new students clapped politely. Obviously, they haven't walked up and down the stairs for an entire school year, but whatever. How do you mispronounce _Misty_?

"It's Misty!" someone yelled out when the Ms. Drisel called for attention.

Thank you, faithful fan.

"And now, I will pass this on to one of our teachers, who has worked here for eleven years, Dr. Daugherty!"

Finally. I haven't liked her since she gave me detention for wearing my dance practice clothes to lunch. It was totally unreasonable.

"Hello! Yes, I'm Dr. Daugherty. Now that we're past the subject of... buildings, I will tell you about the details of grades and classes," he said. "The requirements to graduate from the school are harder to accomplish if you're new. For this reason, we rarely accept anyone in their junior or senior year, although we do make exceptions to students who have had training in the performing arts before applying. To graduate, you will need four years of English, math, and fitness, which can be either a sport or dance. Also, you will need four years of a performing art skill, which will be specified in the paper we will hand out. Three years of history and world language are required. If you are new to the school, we have classes open during summer, spring, and winter break. To pass a year, a special test has to be taken. Your homeroom teacher will explain in more detail."

"Thank you for listening!" Ms. Drisel interrupted, a smile plastered on her face. "But we have run out of time. Today, the cafeteria is open. Then, you will go to your home room teacher's classroom. The information will be in your mailbox after lunch."

I ate lunch alone at a small shop in the Plaza, then went back to outside the dorm to get a small letter. I was in Miss B's class. B was short for her first name, Bella. She was a new teacher, and also fresh out of college, so she was more understanding than the other teachers. She was also one of the singing instructors.

I strolled to the school building, using the new elevator to get to my class. As it moved up, I studied it. I peeked around and behind the other students. The elevator was a true work of art.

I decided not to exit when the elevator stopped, but stayed in it as it delivered students to their classes. I really love this elevator. I nearly failed my English class working for money for an elevator, and here it was. It was like the ones you'd find in hotels; it was spacious and played cheesy music. But my favorite thing about it? The windows.

Yes, two big windows on the sides of the elevators. I asked for them after watching a crime show and being slightly paranoid for a few days, but it was for the best. Many great things will come out of these windows, you'll see.

After I finally got off the elevator, I went to Miss B's class. I remember the first time we met like it was yesterday. She told me that she liked my shoes. I told her that I liked her skirt.

"Hello Misty, nice to see you again," she greeted as I walked in. Paper name tags were scattered on the desks, which were arranged in six desks by four. I found mine at the side, next to the window, and in the front. I looked at the desk next to mine.

The name tag read, in black cursive, Ash Ketchum. I sighed. See? Oranges know everything.

Time passed and, eventually, all the seats were filled, except for the one behind me and including the one in front of me. I groaned, coming to the realization that Ash and I will _have _to talk to each other, since we sit next to each other and Miss B was very into teaching us into holding conversations or something like that.

"Good afternoon, class," Miss B smiled brightly. "We only have a few hours to sort this out, and I know it sounds like a lot of time, but trust me, it's not. Lyra, pass out these papers. Misty, cards."

I got white envelopes, complete with Miss B's cursive, that contained an I.D. and probably a map each. The papers Lyra, a senior and our school's President, had were the ones we got last year. They had checked off the classes we were already in, and then we got to choose the rest—dance or a sport; singing or acting; producing or songwriting.

I knew most of the people in the class, and matched the name on the envelope with the name tags, so I finished quickly. Lyra finished as quickly as me.

I already had English, Trigonometry, Physics, French, and US History (my last history and language class, thankfully) chosen by the teachers. I checked off dance for fitness, and then chose bass for my music class. I also chose songwriting for elective, and almost added producing before remembering that I was _very _bad at it, so no.

"When you're done, pass it up," Miss B announced. After the choosing was over, she began to describe the test. "Every year, the school lets you take a test. You will be tested on the skills you learned the past year. _However_, you can ask to take the test anytime, and if you did not attend this school from ninth grade to now, you are encouraged to learn the skills and take the test more than once a year. If you are planning one taking it, come to your home room teacher."

I, luckily, started the school in ninth grade, since I had three older sisters who were already attending. I didn't need to take tests anytime during the middle of the year, but I did anyways, just to see what it would be like. Ash actually went along with me. We both failed, but did really well at the end of the year.

The teachers keep track of how many tests you've done and passed. First, you take English and math, then science. Next was language, one of the harder parts of the test, and history. Those two only required three years, so most seniors (and some juniors) don't have to take them. Then, there was a performing arts skill, which could be combined with fitness if you have dance. And _then, _there was an "elective," like producing or something similar, that people used as performing arts, so they have to switch and use singing or acting as an elective.

And on top of that, you must have a C average. It's all very stressful.

"And now, for student council! We already have everybody voted for; ninth graders, you can vote and run for any position at the end of the year. Let's see—"

"Hey Miss B." The door opened and Drew stepped in. He had a yellow slip of paper. "I was with Adair."

"_Principal_ Adair," Miss B corrected. "Take a seat and fill in the paper."

He made his way to the desk behind me, and almost immediately started playing with my hair.

"Class! I have very nice news. Three students in our class is in the student council! If you were here last year, you already know, but ninth graders, you will get to vote and run for student council positions at the end of the year," Miss B continued. "Anyways, Lyra, over here, is our Student Body President, Misty is our Vice, and Ash is our treasurer! From one of the other classes, our secretary is Tiana Green. Oh, the time's almost up. Remember, we only have this class at the beginning of the school week, all right? So don't come here tomorrow."

The bell rang, signaling the end of class. I sighed in relief, getting up and stumbling as I tried to leave. I heaved a sigh, turning around to glare at who had tried to trip me.

_Ash._

He got up, muttering an apology, and left. I glared at his back as he left. Drew slapped my back, pushing me towards the door.

"Did you _see_ that?" I asked him, nearly seething.

"He accidentally stuck his foot out," Drew shrugged. "Accidents happen."

"I can't believe you have such horrible taste in friends," I said, ignoring everything he just said.

He let out a short laugh. "What are you then?"

"Your saving grace."

"Saving grace?" He laughed.

"Saved you from the horrible pit of friends you have."

"I'll have you know, I've known Ash since my detention days in middle school."

I scoffed. "Well, that explains a lot."

"What's your excuse for being his best friend for two years?" he asked. I couldn't make anything up. "I'll take you to your dorm."

"Why?" I asked. We were already outside. It was a gorgeous day. The sun shone, it smelled like wet grass, and even the annoying birds were singing.

"To see my girlfriend," he answered bluntly.

"And here I thought you wanted to make sure your best friend got to her dorm safely. How delusional of me."

When we reached my dorm, I let him in. He went through the other door immediately. I heard a loud shriek, and ran over.

Dawn stood at the kitchen door, a hand over heart, while Drew had his hands up in surrender.

"I didn't do anything," he said.

"He appeared out of nowhere!" Dawn yelled. "Misty, get him out!"

"You heard her," I said. "Out you go."

"Sorry," he said to Dawn, his hands still up in the air. He inched his way to the door. "See you later, Misty."

He left before I could say anything. I laughed at the situation.

"Who was that?" Dawn asked, taking a deep breath.

"Drew Hayden, May's—"

"Boyfriend," Dawn completed. "I shouldn't have kicked him out, right?"

I shrugged. "Doesn't matter, but you'll be seeing him a lot, being May's boyfriend and all. And my best friend, too."

"I thought boys weren't allowed in here," Dawn said.

"They aren't, but they still manage to. And vice versa. We go over to their dorms too. So, did you get your schedule?"

"Not yet. When do they get here?" she asked.

"They'll send them in by nine. They have tons of people making them."

It was true. Leaf and I got ours a little after 8 o'clock, while I was getting ready for bed. A knock on the door told us to get it out of our mailbox.

I opened the door to get my schedule, my hair out of its usual side ponytail. I turned and saw some other students, including May, doing the same thing. Past her were two students and a mailman, putting folded papers into the burgundy box.

I handed Leaf's schedule to her. We compared ours really quick and watched some television before I went to bed. It was early, but I was tired and I wanted to be safely tucked in before the orange did anything else to me, like bore me to death _again_.

I'm already _so_ tired of school.


End file.
